Part 1: What is World-Building?
Serra gave us a lesson on world building, and we discussed which aspects we needed to take into account when creating our own environment for our animations.
- Which creatures are going to live in our world?
- How do they communicate?
- Do they have their own rules and values?
In this sense, world building needs to be addressed in a holistic way since we need to think of how the world looks like, who is going to live there and how the creatures are going to interact with each other.
Part 2: Creature Animation
When it comes to the world we created for our immersive experience, we designed a semi-realistic environment that portrays the ruins of some emblematic monuments. We will show that life has evolved, and for this purpose, we will include some creatures in the form of spirits: snails and dolphins.
Why a Snail?
Despite the slow-paced nature of snails, they are always determined to reach their destination, and therefore, are seen as a symbol of persistence, patience and progress in life.
Reference Videos
In order to create my snail animation, I searched for reference videos on Youtube and then, I combined them into one video, making sure I had shots from different perspectives. These reference videos were crucial in order to edit my animation from different viewports in Maya.
- Reference List:
- Hologei Archive (2018) Snail Muscular Foot : What it Looks Like from Beneath. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-5flco1sNio&ab_channel=hologeiarchive (Accessed: 15 February 2023).
- Stephen H. Outdoors (2019) Snail Close-up, Retracting Tentacles (Full HD). Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XKnP9pHmNGA&ab_channel=StephenH.Outdoors (Accessed: 15 February 2023).
- 4k Topia (2021) Snail 4K | 4K Display | 4K DEMO. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iB-S3B5QnQs&ab_channel=4KTopia (Accessed: 15 February 2023).
Snail Animation Planning
Snail Animation
Why a Dolphin?
Dolphins are known to be highly sensitive creatures and have emotional similarities with humans. Since they have a spiritual connection to the idea of not only life but death, they are perceived as symbols of spiritual renewal and rebirth.
Reference Videos
To start working on my dolphin animation, once again I combined some videos that included shots from different perspectives.
- Reference List
- Great Escapes (2021) 8 hours – Hawaii Dolphins Underwater Relaxing Music – RELAX, SLEEP, MEDITATE | Great Escapes. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bjaXt-Q7dHY&ab_channel=GreatEscapes (Accessed: 15 February 2023).
- Scenic Relaxation (2020) Swimming With Dolphins 4K – 30 Minute Underwater Relaxation Film. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UV704FOSDjg&ab_channel=ScenicRelaxation (Accessed: 15 February 2023).
Dolphin Animation Planning
Dolphin Animation
Part 3: Photogrammetry
Furthermore, Serra introduced us to the art of photogrammetry as a useful tool to create 3D models within a short time frame. We used the software Reality Capture to transform the videos we took at Tate Modern into 3D models.
Scanning
First, I scanned at the Tate Modern the sculpture “Monument for the Living” by Marwan Rechmaoui.
Photogrammetry
Then, I imported the video into Reality Capture and the software created a 3D model.
Cleaning Up
Later, I had to clean up the model, as there were many imperfections within the mesh.
Texturing
After the clean-up process, the software was also able to provide some texturing materials.